GOLDEN, CO – DECEMBER 12: Alejo Martinez, center, and Abbi Hennesey watch as 1st and 2nd grade teacher Lisa Hann signs to a classmate during class at Rocky Mountain Deaf School in Golden, Colorado on December 12, 2013. The Rocky Mountain Deaf School recently broke ground on their new facility.

JEFFERSON COUNTY — Sinking a shovel into the ground probably never felt so good for Amy Novotny.

The second-year principal at the Rocky Mountain Deaf School certainly had a difficult start to her tenure, but now that her school will have a permanent home next year, she’s breathing a sigh of relief.

“I’m thrilled. It’s been such a long time coming,” said Novotny, who is deaf, through interpreter Courtney Williams.

The school is being specifically designed for deaf students. It will be more visually friendly and will have a gym and large playground for the K-12 school. The new building will allow the school to serve 130 students compared to the 70 they currently have. They will also hire more faculty, hopefully for next school year.

“This is really the first building created by deaf people for deaf people,” first-year teacher Chris Kelly said via Williams.

Students also had input in the design of the school and are just as excited about the move as the staff is.

“Having my own school is going to be cool,” fourth-grader Savannah Jones said through Williams.

The city of Lakewood had approved the rezoning of the site at 2090 S. Wright St., adjacent to open space. Jefferson County Public Schools purchased the land from the developer of the homes in the area in 1977.

However, residents in the area were opposed to the school and garnered enough signatures to force City Council to reconsider the rezoning. Before council voted, Jeffco Schools asked the council to rescind the rezoning to save taxpayer money.

Had council not voted to rezone, a special election would have been triggered.

“I think it was pretty emotional. It was a bit of a roller coaster to see our hopes come to fruition and then see them dashed,” Novotny said.

Novotny also thanked Jeffco Schools Superintendent Cindy Stevenson, whom she said supported RMDS every step of the way. Stevenson referred to the situation in Lakewood as “terrible” and “awful,” but is excited that the school has a permanent home.

RMDS will finish this school year and begin the next one at its current location at 1921 Youngfield St., in a strip mall in Golden.

Novotny said she will be a little sad to leave what has been the school’s home.

“I guess I do feel a little nostalgic about this place, we’ve made it our home, even though the building is not the best. I don’t think we’ve appreciated how creative we’ve had to become,” Novotny said.

The new school is paid for by a $13 million Better Excellent Schools Today grant from the Colorado Department of Education.

Joe Vaccarelli covers Denver and Lakewood for the YourHub section of The Denver Post. Prior to coming aboard in 2011, he worked with Mile High Newspapers. Vaccarelli also teaches percussion at schools in Golden and Littleton and performs with the Denver Broncos Stampede and Denver Nuggets Skyline drumlines.